The Internet, some would argue, is the single most defining feature of our time; it is revolutionary because it enables individuals to have a global voice. To make the most of this resource, it is essential to have a user-friendly and dynamic web page. By utilizing Open Source software an individual may do so with the click of a button.

Open Source software is free and is developed by a group of individuals for the benefit of the community and the public. The developers that work on these Open Source projects do so without financial reward from the sale and use of their product. The underlying belief is that the power is in the people, not in the software. An extremely useful and easy way to use Open Source website creation and management tool is called Wordpress (www.wordpress.org). With this software you can create a website in minutes and allow users to edit the content in a very similar manner to which they would write and send an email.

Wordpress started with a small amount of source code (source code is what programmers write to make computer programs) and fewer users than you can count on your hands and toes. Since then, it has grown to be the largest self-hosted website creation and management tool in the world, used on hundreds of thousands of sites and seen by millions of people every day.

Everything included in the software package, from the documentation to the code itself, was created by and for the community. With its popularity, Wordpresss has thousands of people all over the world working on it at any given moment (more than most commercial platforms). It also means you are free to use it for anything that you desire, from your cat’s home page to a Fortune 500 intranet site, without paying anyone a license fee. In order to get started with Wordpress you will need to purchase “hosting.” A hosting company provides your website with space on the Internet, usually for just a couple of dollars a month. There are many web hosts out there, the vast majority of which meet the WordPress minimum requirements, but choosing one from the crowd can be a chore. Just like flowers need the right environment to grow, Wordpress works best when it’s in a rich hosting environment.

If you would like to determine whether a particular hosting service company meets the minimum Wordpress requirements, here is a email snippet you can send to them.

I’m interested in running the open-source Wordpress blogging software (www.wordpress.org) and I was wondering if accounts through your hosting company support the following:

• PHP 4.2 or greater
  
• MySQL 3.23.23 or greater
  
• The mod_rewrite Apache module

In the meantime, or if you don’t need the flexibility of a full web host, you may consider getting a free blog from the www.wordpress.com.

That is all it takes to claim your little off-ramp on the information super highway. There is nothing to lose and much to gain so do not be intimidated: Roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. If you run into any trouble along the way, or would like to learn more about the Wordpress community please visit their site at: www.wordpress.com On the website you will find links to much information and technical support. You’ll also find the website users quite co-operative.

This article was put together by Christopher Luft, BCICS technology student, and its contents are released under the GNU Free Documentation License. For more Information on the Open Source Software Movement please visit www.opensource.org.